Osaka’s only urban winery occupies a handsome two-storey space some 10 minutes on foot from Shinsaibashi Station. The giant tanks of the winemaking facility on the ground floor are visible from the Italian restaurant upstairs, where you get the opportunity to taste Fujimaru’s own wines – made entirely with grapes grown in the area around Osaka – plus some 15 other varieties by the glass (from ¥550). Around a third of the wines on the list are usually Japanese, with European labels making up the rest of the selection. Fujimaru wines are also available by the bottle.
Sommelier Hiroshi Kawabata, winemaker Tomofumi Fujimaru’s right-hand man, explains that the charm of domestic wine is in how challenging it is to make. ‘[Japanese wine] is imbued with the guts and spirit of producers who keep growing their grapes here despite the adverse climate,’ he says. Raise a glass to these artisans’ efforts while savouring quality Italian cuisine from appetisers to pasta, meat and fish just a quick metro ride away from the neon lights and tourist hordes of Dotonbori.